Iona Skye
Active Member
hello reefers and fishkeepers!
Iona Skye here, I am a longtime keeper of freshwater fish & live plants. Now I am venturing towards my childhood dream - reefs.
BUT FIRST - I need experience. I need equipment. And I will need advice along the way! So here is a bit about me for whomever is interested:
Thing #1 - I am short on hobby money. (Yes, I hear the groaning and eye-rolling and warnings to pick a different hobby.) My solution: be creative. Learn the inner workings inside and out until you can build one yourself. Then, when you don't have the proper supplies, pick up someone's broken equipment and fix it, and perhaps modify it along the way to suit your needs. Then when it breaks, learn some more!
Thing #2 - Since I don't have a lot of funds available, things progress pretty slowly. But that's okay. Reefing is a dream that will eventually happen when I am ready. I'll add stock only after I know I can care for it. Once I bought a red fromia star (by lfs's recommendation), brought it home, and then researched it. That's when I found out I brought home an animal I could never feed properly. NEVER AGAIN will I accept a pet that I do not have the means to care for properly. Man, that was really upsetting.
Thing #3 - I am an animal lover all around. My husband and I have two four-legged kids, Asta and Martin, whom we fondly refer to as "the Hekkos" (derived from the expression "Heck!" which we believe to be a dog's substitute for swearing, since of course dogs do not have cuss words in their vocabulary.)
Thing #4 - my fishes: I have two saltwater tanks going, a 30-gal and a 60-gal w/sump and small hob refugium. I am working on plumbing the two systems together. I have a few residents so far, and all have silly names: snowflake eel (Amore), ocellarius clown (Gerard Butler), tux urchin (Frankly), choc chip star (Cookie), giant Haitan nem (Nettie), fuzzy dwf lion (soon to by named by my 9 yr student), 3 grn chromis (unnamed), lawnmower blenny (name tbd). Plus hermits & snails.
Thing #5 - Long term project: someone recently gave me a 180-gal aquarium. Let the scrounging for equipment begin! (see thing #2)
Thing #6 - I have been so blessed.... I hope I can leave a positive mark on your life as well. If you're reading this, please consider doing something kind for someone today. And if they want to give something in return, simply ask them to pay it forward.
Nice to meet you guys and I'm really excited to be here!
- iona skye
Iona Skye here, I am a longtime keeper of freshwater fish & live plants. Now I am venturing towards my childhood dream - reefs.
BUT FIRST - I need experience. I need equipment. And I will need advice along the way! So here is a bit about me for whomever is interested:
Thing #1 - I am short on hobby money. (Yes, I hear the groaning and eye-rolling and warnings to pick a different hobby.) My solution: be creative. Learn the inner workings inside and out until you can build one yourself. Then, when you don't have the proper supplies, pick up someone's broken equipment and fix it, and perhaps modify it along the way to suit your needs. Then when it breaks, learn some more!
Thing #2 - Since I don't have a lot of funds available, things progress pretty slowly. But that's okay. Reefing is a dream that will eventually happen when I am ready. I'll add stock only after I know I can care for it. Once I bought a red fromia star (by lfs's recommendation), brought it home, and then researched it. That's when I found out I brought home an animal I could never feed properly. NEVER AGAIN will I accept a pet that I do not have the means to care for properly. Man, that was really upsetting.
Thing #3 - I am an animal lover all around. My husband and I have two four-legged kids, Asta and Martin, whom we fondly refer to as "the Hekkos" (derived from the expression "Heck!" which we believe to be a dog's substitute for swearing, since of course dogs do not have cuss words in their vocabulary.)
Thing #4 - my fishes: I have two saltwater tanks going, a 30-gal and a 60-gal w/sump and small hob refugium. I am working on plumbing the two systems together. I have a few residents so far, and all have silly names: snowflake eel (Amore), ocellarius clown (Gerard Butler), tux urchin (Frankly), choc chip star (Cookie), giant Haitan nem (Nettie), fuzzy dwf lion (soon to by named by my 9 yr student), 3 grn chromis (unnamed), lawnmower blenny (name tbd). Plus hermits & snails.
Thing #5 - Long term project: someone recently gave me a 180-gal aquarium. Let the scrounging for equipment begin! (see thing #2)
Thing #6 - I have been so blessed.... I hope I can leave a positive mark on your life as well. If you're reading this, please consider doing something kind for someone today. And if they want to give something in return, simply ask them to pay it forward.
Nice to meet you guys and I'm really excited to be here!
- iona skye
